The Late Evolution of Low-Mass Stars: a Deep UV Color-Magnitude Diagram of M32

Details The Late Evolution of Low-Mass Stars: a Deep UV Color-Magnitude Diagram of M32 The Late Evolution of Low-Mass Stars: a Deep UV Color-Magnitude Diagram of M32

Jul 2001

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2001hst..prop.9053b&link_type=abstract

HST Proposal ID #9053

Physics

Hst Proposal Id #9053 Stellar Populations

Scientific paper

We propose to construct a deep far-UV color-magnitude diagram {CMD} of the hot stellar population in the center of M32 {NGC221}. Our previous Cycle 7 near-UV STIS observations of the M32 core resolved 8000 stars in a single bandpass. While these observations provided no color information, they nonetheless showed conclusively that hot {T_eff > 8500 K} horizontal branch {HB} stars exist in M32. Moreover, the near-UV luminosity function showed a surprising lack of post- asymptotic giant branch {post-AGB} stars, indicating that they evolve much more rapidly than expected from canonical theory. Obtaining color information is the vital next step to extending this analysis. A CMD for a statistically large sample of evolved stars in M32 will provide fundamental information on post-red giant branch evolution that is not obtainable from Galactic globular clusters {because of too few stars} or from the Galactic field {because distance uncertainties dominate the errors}. We aim to address the following questions: 1} Do hot HB stars have high helium abundance, as predicted by some models of elliptical galaxy chemical evolution? 2} How does the rate of post-AGB evolution differ from theoretical expectations, and what does this tell us about mass-loss on the AGB? 3} What is the mass and temperature distribution on the HB of M32? 4} What are the relative lifetimes of the HB and post-HB phases?

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